NASA launched the second of two NASA Mars Exploration Rovers, which will reach the Red Planet early in 2004.
As if we didn’t have enough to worry about, a distinguished group of Americans joined together to send a unique request to Congressional leaders, asking that preparations be made to deal with the prospect of Earth being slammed by an asteroid, comet, or other near Earth object.
As if NASA didn’t have enough to worry about, CNN quoted a report from the Inspector General's office, which should have been released in February, but which was delayed due to the space shuttle Columbia's accident, saying "the space agency was 'overly optimistic' in predicting future shuttle flight rates and hired too many astronauts in recent years."
That little tidbit was followed rapidly by the CAIB’s Working Scenario. The final report was still a month away, but, Retired Navy Adm. Harold Gehman, the chair of the CAIB, said that even without the destruction of the space shuttle Columbia in February, the shuttle program was in need of an overhaul.
In the middle of July, viewers were treated to a beautiful scene with Mars sitting very close to the Moon in the night sky.
NASA started working on improvements in safety by announcing plans to create an independent Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) at the agency's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., to provide comprehensive examination of all NASA programs and projects.
Meanwhile the CAIB came out with Preliminary Recommendations 3, 4, and 5, which discussed On-Orbit/On-Station TPS inspection and repair capability as well as better imaging systems. This was followed by the disturbing news that the Columbia Crew were most likely still alive for some time after the data stopped coming.
Finally, we had some good things to talk about. We celebrated the anniversary of Apollo 11, NASA's first manned landing on the Moon. Also, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation said that scientists are now saying that "fewer asteroids than previously thought are likely to collide with the Earth and cause widespread damage."
July closed with the saga of a cosmonaut aboard the International Space Station who planned to wed his fiancé while still in orbit. This on-again off-again wedding had a happy ending.
August was a special time for astronomy scientists and amateur astronomers. Our red neighbor, Mars moved closer than it’s been in 50,000 years. On August 27, the “red planet” was less than 55.76 million kilometers (34.65 million miles) away from the Earth. It was a spectacular sight.
Meanwhile, the Columbia Accident Investigation Board released their final report. It concludes that while NASA's present Space Shuttle is not inherently unsafe, a number of mechanical fixes are required to make the space Shuttle safer in the short term. The report also concludes that NASA's management system is unsafe to manage the shuttle system beyond the short term and that the agency does not have a strong safety culture.
As summer came to an end, our education department worked with the education experts at NASA to create About Astronomy/Space In the Class, a series of lesson plans and articles designed for teachers, parents, and students alike. These lesson plans use space and astronomy to help teach a variety of topics, from science to mathematics, language arts to social studies.
In September, our free plansipheres were featured in the Family Circle magazine of September 2, 2003.
While a new space telescope lifted off at the end of August, September brought more worries as scientists examined the path of asteroid 2003 QQ47, at first thought to be a threat in 2014. With more study, it became clear the danger was not real. Meanwhile, on a threat closer to home, a map showing the potential risk of West Nile Virus being carried by mosquitoes in Monterey County, Calif. was the product of four students who worked this summer at NASA Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif.
Perhaps the shining moment for September was the announcement of a “Return To Flight Panel” by NASA.